Scorsese suspends fake documentary on Clinton: not favorable enough to subject

Documntary: a movie or a television or radio program that provides a factual record or report. Synonyms: factual program, factual film

NY Times -  Martin Scorsese's ... partly finished documentary about Mr. Clinton — which once seemed likely to be released as Hillary Rodham Clinton was navigating a presidential run — has stalled over disagreements about control, people briefed on the project said.

Though parts of the film were shot over the last two years as Mr. Clinton made a philanthropic visit to Africa and elsewhere, the project is now indefinitely shelved, partly because Mr. Clinton insisted on more control over the interview questions and final version than Mr. Scorsese was willing to give, those people said.

How Mr. Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea, who briefly worked as a special correspondent at NBC News, might figure in the film or on the production team was also an open question.

Asked about assertions that the project, which is backed by HBO, was stalled over differences about content and control and was now put aside, Matt McKenna, a spokesman for Mr. Clinton, in an email described them as “inaccurate,” without elaborating.

A spokesman for Mr. Scorsese declined to comment on the project, as did a spokesman for Steve Bing, a Clinton friend and donor who was to be a producer of the film.

The people who described the project’s disintegration (barring a sudden thaw between the two camps) spoke on condition of anonymity because of confidentiality strictures.

 Mr. Scorsese clearly had a soft spot for the Clinton project. In a 2012 statement, he said the film would “provide greater insight into this transcendent figure.” Mr. Clinton at the time said he was pleased to become the subject of a “legendary director.”

Clearly, the film carried the risk that an unflattering camera angle, unwelcome question or even an obvious omission by Mr. Scorsese would become a blemish to Mr. Clinton’s legacy or provide fodder for Clinton critics as the 2016 campaign approaches. Apparently to avoid such problems, people close to Mr. Clinton sought to approve questions he would be asked in the film, and went so far as to demand final cut, a privilege generally reserved for directors of Mr. Scorsese’s stature.

Mr. Scorsese’s camp rejected those suggestions and the project was shelved. The film now appears to be years away from completion.

In the fall of 2013, CNN scrapped a documentary about Mrs. Clinton in the face of pushback from Clinton aides and the Republican National Committee; NBC dropped a planned mini-series in which Diane Lane would have portrayed her.

Also, “Rodham,” a planned feature film about the romance between a young Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham, has been struggling through Hollywood’s development process since Lionsgate acquired rights to it in 2013...

As an unauthorized biography, “Rodham” does not depend on support from the Clintons, as did Mr. Scorsese’s film. But resistance could become a problem when the producers eventually seek out actresses who are represented by a small number of Hollywood agencies. Already, two people said, at least one Hollywood actors’ agent sympathetic to the Clintons has communicated concerns about the possible impact of “Rodham.”